Monday, November 27, 2017

To the person who just who just purchased a copy from Amazon of 9th edition of the International Shortwave Broadcast Guide (Winter 2017-18), your copy is not the current one. It has new features for that new edition, but it still has the summer frequency schedules You need to ask Amazon for refund. To the SWL crowd the new edition will be out within the next 24 hours.

If you need a
current stamp list or supply list, I can email it to you.

DISCOUNT
POSTAGE!!: I have a supply of Forever
stamps in rolls of 100. Minimum order w/o a shipping charge
would be 5 rolls at the listed $208. ppd. price. BUT if you
can use 10 rolls, the price will be $400. Email to reserve!

In single format, I
still have a few. 100 single forever stamps at $40.00 ppd.

FLEA MARKET:Saturday, Dec. 2nd: I'll
have a table at Bridgewater Middle School, in Bridgewater, NJ. I'll
have fountain pens and mech. pencils for sale. On Saturday, Dec. 9th:
at Somerville High School, in Somerville, NJ I'll have a table
here with more pens and pencils... Including a beautiful 1914!! Sheaffer's
Ladies' ring top pen and a good number of silver mech. pencils on pocket chains
for that vintage steam punk look!

The
Island of Rats, that is Rottnest Island, lies just off the Western Australian
coastline opposite Perth and Fremantle.This island has featured on two separate occasions in massive wide area
searches in the Indian Ocean.

The first occasion was after the
firefight in the Indian Ocean off the Australian coastline between the two navy
vessels, the Australian HMAS Sydney and the German HSK Kormoran, on November
19, 1941.That was 76 years ago this
weekend.

The two warring ships tragically
destroyed each other in a fierce battle lasting just one hour.Both ships were sunk, with a heavy loss of
life.Aboard the Kormoran were 400 crew,
300 of whom survived and were taken prisoner along the Australian
coastline.Aboard the Sydney however
were 650 men, none of whom survived, making it Australia’s deadliest wartime disaster.The Australian naval authorities became aware
of the deadly naval battle only when survivors of the German raider Kormoran
arrived in lifeboats on the Western Australian coastline.

The first search over the ocean was
carried out informally and unofficially by a Fairey Battle airplane on November
23 (1941), four days after this tragic wartime engagement.The Fairey Battle was a light single engined
bomber from England, and in this initial search flight over the Indian Ocean,
the plane used Rottnest Island as its reference point.During the two following days, a flight of 6
Hudson Bombers flew a fan shaped search pattern, again referenced on Rottnest
Island, though no ship debris nor survivor lifeboats were found.

It was not until 2008 that the
wreckage of both the German Kormoran and the Australian Sydney were located by
the Finding Sydney Foundation which was using sophisticated underwater
technical equipment.The scattered
wreckage of both ships was found 12 miles apart in ocean waters 1½ miles deep, 128 miles west of Shark
Bay in Western Australia in March 2008.

The second major aircraft search in
which Rottnest Island featured again began in March 2014, when the Malaysian
airliner MAS370 went missing over the Indian Ocean.This passenger plane with more than 200
passengers and crew began a regular scheduled flight from Kuala Lumpur in
Malaysia to Beijing in China.

After one hour in flight, the plane turned
around and flew back across the Malay Peninsula and then out over the Indian
Ocean.When the fuel was exhausted, the
plane fell into the ocean.

Several different search patterns
were implemented, with some based on Rottnest Island as a reference point.Though some debris has washed up on distant
shores, the wreckage of the sunken plane itself has not been rediscovered.This search and recovery effort developed
into the largest,most extensive and
most expensive aviation search in the history of the world.

The Island ofRats, Rottnest Island, is 7 miles long and 3
miles wide, and it lies 11 miles due west of Fremantle on coastal Western Australia.On the map, it looks like a scrawny ancient
monster.

This island was known to the
Aborigines as Wadjemap who did inhabit it at times in the ancient eras, though
not since European discovery.The first
European discoverers were Dutch explorers (1610), and the first to land on the
island was Willem de Vlamingh who went ashore on December 16, 1629; he spent 6
days on this small and rather featureless island.

It was Vlamingh who named the island
Rotte Nest in the Dutch language, which later became Rottnest.Vlemingh discovered the rare Australian
animal the Quokka which is best described as a miniature variety of
Kangaroo.He thought that it was a large
type of rat.

The first European settlers were
William Clarke and Robert Thomson together with their families, in 1831.The island has since been used as a prison
for Aboriginal criminals, a reform school for boys, an internment camp for
Germans and Austrians during World War 1, and an internment camp for Italians
during World War 2.These days the island
has a resident population of about 100, and it is a tourist destination for ½ million visitors each year.

Southwest of Rottnest Island is a
ship graveyard, 7 miles in diameter, and the first ship was deliberately sunk
there in 1910.Since then, 47
historically significant ships have been sunk at that location, in addition to
a whole host of American lendlease vehicles and aircraft towards the end of
World War 2.

The first wireless experiments in
Western Australia took place during the year 1899.A spark transmitter was installed in the
Royal Yacht Club in Perth and a small police launch carried a coherer receiver
on the Swan River and on Swan River Lake.

Right towards the end of that same
year (1899), the police launch ventured out from the Swan River in an attempt
to establish wireless communication with Rottnest island.The simple electrical signal was lost soon
after the launch entered open waters.

Just six years later (1905), the
Postmaster General, the Honorable Austin Chapman, made an official statement in
which he indicated that the Australian government was giving consideration to
installing a wireless station on Rottnest island.Three years later though (1908), the federal
government stated that the Western Australian wireless station would be
installed on the mainland, not Rottnest.Ultimately, the wireless station, with the projected callsigns POF and
later POP, was installed at Applecross as VIP in 1912.

However, a communication station was
installed on Rottnest around 1933 and it was on the air under the callsign VKN
on 1620 kHz, just immediately above the standard mediumwave band.Four years later (1937), the navy announced
that they would install a communication station on Rottnest, and during World
War 2, the army did so too, in conjunction with a radar station.

This army station was installed on
the bottom floor of the 3 storied Rottnest Fortress.It was this station, under Naval Commander
Victor Ramage, that declared that they had heard no wireless signals from the
two ships Kormoran and Sydney during their firefight 450 miles to the north.

Product: Weekly Highlights and Forecasts
:Issued: 2017 Nov 27 0259 UTC# Prepared by the US Dept. of Commerce, NOAA, Space Weather Prediction Center# Product description and SWPC web contact www.swpc.noaa.gov/weekly.html## Weekly Highlights and Forecasts#Highlights of Solar and Geomagnetic Activity 20 - 26 November 2017Solar activity was at very low levels. Region 2698 (N13, L=108, class/area Cao/060 on 26 Nov), the only spotted region on the disk, was quiet throughout the period. A filament structure, located inthe NE quadrant, was observed erupting beginning at about 25/0445 UTC. A subsquent CME was observed in LASCO C2 imagery lifting off the E limb, first visible at 25/0712 UTC. Analysis, and follow-on WSA-Enlil model output, suggested the CME has a potential glancing blow at Earth early to midday on 29 Nov.

No proton events were observed at geosynchronous orbit.

The greater than 2 MeV electron flux at geosynchronous orbit was at high levels on 20 Nov and again on 22-24 Nov. Moderate levels were observed on 21 Nov and again on 25-26 Nov. A maximum flux of 4,658 pfu was observed at 23/1555 UTC.

Geomagnetic field activity ranged from quiet to minor storm (G1-Minor) levels. The period began with quiet conditions through most of 20 Nov. Late on 20 Nov, activity levels increased tounsettled to active and persisted through 21 Nov into early 22 Nov. G1 geomagnetic storm levels were also observed early on 21 Nov. This increase in activity was due to effects from a recurrent, positive polarity CH HSS. Solar wind speeds reached a peak of near 625 km/s at about 21/1500 UTC, total field hit a maximum of 14 nT early on 21 Nov, while the Bz component reached a maximum southward extent of-12 nT at 21/0400 UTC.

The remainder of the period witnessed a slow, gradual decrease in wind speeds to finish the summary period near 350 km/s The geomagnetic field responded with mostly quiet to unsettled levels through the remainder of the summary period.

Forecast of Solar and Geomagnetic Activity 27 November - 23 December 2017Solar activity is expected to be at very low levels throughout the outlook period.

No proton events are expected at geosynchronous orbit.

The greater than 2 MeV electron flux at geosynchronous orbit is expected to reach high levels on 30 Nov - 02 Dec, 06-10 Dec, 12-17 Dec and 19-21 Dec due to recurrent CH HSS influence. Normal tomoderate levels are expected for the remainder of the outlook period.

Geomagnetic field activity is expected to be at unsettled to active levels on 27-30 Nov due to negative polarity CH HSS effects. Isolated G1 (Minor) storm conditions are likely on 29 Nov due toeffects from the 25 Nov CME. Unsettled to active levels are expected on 04-08 Dec, 11-14 Dec and again on 17-21 Dec due to recurrent CH HSS effects. In addition, G1 (Minor) geomagnetic storm levels are likely on 04-07 Dec and 18 Dec with G2 (Moderate) levels likely on 04-06 Dec, all due to CH HSS effects.

Friday, November 24, 2017

Hello friends,Last weekend’s experiment with the very fast 8PSK-500F and -1000F
modes was interesting and fun. There were not many 100% decodes, but they did
include listeners in Belgium, France, and Germany tuned to the transmitter in
Bulgaria, as well as listeners in Texas and Oregon tuned to WRMI Florida.
Several listeners did successfully receive entire paragraphs, but the decode
turned to gibberish during fades (which are not uncommon on shortwave!). We will try more experiment with the 8PSK
modes on future shows.

Special all-Olivia-64-2000
broadcast this weekend

This weekend, we will shift from the very fast to the very slow.
In the past few weeks, the Shortwave Radiogram transmission Sundays at
2330-2400 UTC on 11580 kHz from Florida has experienced poor reception in most
parts of the world. To improve the chances of a successful decode, this
broadcast only (number 23S) will be in the Olivia 64-2000 mode. It will
consist of one Voice of America news story. The broadcast will begin with a
brief voice intro, then the RSID for Olivia 64-2000. If the RSID does not work,
you might have to fine-tune the audio frequency for a correct decode.

Olivia 64-2000 is very slow, about 28 words per minute, but robust
in difficult conditions. Please note that the text will not print out until a
few seconds after you hear the tones (if you hear them).Please
record your reception if possible. We may be stretching shortwave to its
limit.

The other
three broadcasts this weekend will be in the usual MFSK32, with four
images.

Here is the lineup for Shortwave Radiogram, program 23, 25-26
November 2017, all in MFSK32:

The Mighty KBC
transmits to Europe
Saturdays at 1500-1600 UTC on 9400 kHz (via Bulgaria), with the minute of MFSK
at about 1530 UTC (if you are outside of Europe, listen via websdr.ewi.utwente.nl:8901/ ). And to North America Sundays at 0000-0200 UTC
(Saturday 7-9 pm EST) on 5960 kHz, via Germany. The minute of MFSK is at about
0130 UTC. Reports to Eric: themightykbc@gmail.com . See also http://www.kbcradio.eu/ and https://www.facebook.com/TheMightyKbc/.

Italian
Broadcasting Corporation (IBC) For the complete IBC transmission schedule visit http://ibcradio.webs.com/ Five minutes of MFSK32 is at the
end of the 30-minute English-language “Shortwave Panorama,” per the schedule
below:

Wednesday, November 22, 2017

Mention
the words "Monitoring the Military," and most radio hobbyists will
immediately think of military air shows, sporting event Military Aircraft
Flybys or a whole host of other military activities they would like to hear on
their radios. There is a big radio frequency spectrum out there to monitor, and
if you know where to listen, you can eavesdrop on some of the coolest radio
communications you will ever hear on a scanner or shortwave radio. Military
communications monitoring is the one segment of the radio hobby that has
exploded in growth in recent years and is getting more popular among the
listening community every day.

Larry
Van Horn N5FPW, spent 15 years documenting activity in the military radio
spectrum in his monthly Milcom column
in the pages of Monitoring Times
magazine. And now for the first time ever, he is publishing and making
available all those columns here at Amazon in the Kindle E-Book format.

Teak Publishing is pleased to announce the release of their latest
Kindle e-books -- the first edition of the Milcom Files –
Monitoring Times edition by Amazon
Bestselling author Larry Van Horn, N5FPW.

The
Milcom Files edition one covers the 15 years of Military Communications (Milcom)
columns that Larry wrote for the now defunct-Monitoring Times magazine
from 1998-2013.

Volume one (ASIN:
B077NN7RQ5)
of the Milcom Files covers columns published between 1998 to 2006. The
column was bimonthly from September 1998 to November 2002, and monthly from
January 2003 to December 2006. Volume two (ASIN:
B077NQXH3C) covers
columns published between 2007 to 2013. These columns were published monthly
during this period. A complete index to all the columns is available on the
Milcom MP blog at http://mt-milcom.blogspot.com/p/blog-page.html.

The MT Milcom columns
documented the U.S. military conversion to narrowband LMR systems, the move
from conventional to trunk radio systems, the 225-400 MHz band plan shift,
including the new 380-400 MHz sub-band, and HF military frequencies, both
foreign and US. This two-volume set of e-books has over 327,000 plus words, and
nearly 1,000 pages of frequencies, call signs, and how-to style articles.

Even though these columns were originally published from
1998-2013, you will find a lot of material that is still valid even today. All US
military services, HF. VHF. UHF, military satellites, FAA Air Route Traffic
Control Center frequencies, base profiles, foreign military frequencies,
airshow frequencies, equipment, and a lot more are included. Each column will
be presented as it was published in MT
in this e-book except for photographs.

If
you are interested in monitoring the military, own a scanner and/or shortwave
radio, then the Milcom Files two volume set is a must reference on your radio
shack shelf.

Teak Publishing’s The Milcom Files Monitoring
Times edition is now available for purchase worldwide from Amazon.com.

The price for each e-Book edition is
US$7.99. This book is being released internationally. Amazon customers in the
United Kingdom, Germany, France Spain, Italy, Japan, India, Canada, Brazil,
Mexico and Australia can order the e-Book from Amazon websites directly
servicing these countries. All other countries can use the regular Amazon.com
website.

You do not need to own a Kindle reader
to read Amazon e-book publications. You can read any Kindle book with Amazon’s
free reading apps. There are free Kindle reading apps for the Kindle Cloud
Reader, Smartphones (iPhone, iTouch, Android, Windows Phone and Blackberry);
computer platforms (Windows XP, Vista, 7 and 8 and Mac); Tablets (iPad, Android
and Windows 8), and, of course, all the Kindle family of readers including the
Kindle Fire series. A Kindle e-book allows you to buy your book once and read
it anywhere. You can find additional details on these apps at this link on the
Amazon website at www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html?ie=UTF8&docId=1000493771.

Monday, November 20, 2017

1. For the week of November 19-25, we will rebroadcast on of our favorite
episodes from 2016, which includes award-winning Jazz piano virtuoso Harold
López-Nussa and other good things.2. For the week of November 26-December 2, we will
feature some interpretations of part of Schubert’s Trout Quintet lead by Cuban
pianist Frank Fernandez along with an part of an intriguing album from the
1980s, Leningrado, featuring moments by several of Cuba’s Jazz elite from the
time.

Four opportunities to listen on shortwave:1. For Eastern Europe but audible well beyond the
target area in most of the Eastern Hemisphere (including parts of East Asia and
Oceania) with 100Kw, Sunday 1500-1600 UTC on SpaceLine, 9400 KHz, from
Kostinbrod, Bulgaria (1800-1900 MSK)2. For the Americas and parts of Europe, Tuesday
0100-0200 UTC on WBCQ, 7490 KHz from Monticello, ME, USA (Monday 8-9PM EST in
the US) NOTE THAT UTC CHANGED FOR B17 BUT EASTERN US TIME IS STILL THE SAME.3 & 4. For Europe and sometimes beyond, Tuesday
1900-2000 UTC and Saturday 1200-1300 UTC on Channel 292, 6070 KHz from
Rohrbach, Germany.